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Scientists do not prove things. Lamarck's theory is long refuted as acquired characteristics and the use and disuse concepts are not explanations for evolution of populations.
Not well supported by the evidence and basically just assertion. Lamarck asserted that acquired characteristics, such as muscles developed during one's lifetime, were heritable. They are not. He also asserted that an organism had a " desire " to evolve. This was also not true.
What is the mechanism that causes evolution. Both knew evolution occurred and occurs but did not know how or why. Lamark's " desire to evolve " and " acquired characteristics " failed to explain evolution. Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection was the better explanation.
Jean-Baptist Lamarck, French naturalist
Darwin's explanation for the fact of evolution was better than Lamarck's explanation and fit the fact of evolution. Natural selection solved much of the species problem, but acquired characteristics did not have the empirical support and explained nothing in the end.
This is the theory of Lamarck and it is long refuted.
Scientists do not prove things. Lamarck's theory is long refuted as acquired characteristics and the use and disuse concepts are not explanations for evolution of populations.
French naturalist who proposed that evolution resulted from the inheritance of acquired characteristics (1744-1829)
His theory of use and disuse was rejected.
Lamarck believed that there was a form of evolution, but contrary to Darwin after him, he believed that the characteristics an organism acquires during his life are inherited by its descendants. For more on Lamarck's hypothesis, see the related question below.
His two main concepts, acquired characteristics and a innate " desire " to evolve, were both unsupported by any evidence and were not the way evolution happens. So, Lamarck's " theory " ( in the vulgar sense ) was utterly refuted by the actual evidence and process of evolution.
Lamarck was correct about the connection between the environment and evolution. He saw that the organism changes based on the environment and its survival. However, Lamarck is not well-known for his advances in the field. Instead, he is known for the incorrect mechanisms for evolution that he proposed, including "use and disuse" and "inheritance of acquired characteristics." (A small note, Lamarck definitely did not have a "theory," he had hypotheses).
Not well supported by the evidence and basically just assertion. Lamarck asserted that acquired characteristics, such as muscles developed during one's lifetime, were heritable. They are not. He also asserted that an organism had a " desire " to evolve. This was also not true.
What is the mechanism that causes evolution. Both knew evolution occurred and occurs but did not know how or why. Lamark's " desire to evolve " and " acquired characteristics " failed to explain evolution. Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection was the better explanation.
Lamarck proposed a scientific explanation for evolution because organisms evovled through the inherititance of acquired charactaristics.
Acquired characteristics.
Lamarck give the idea that an organism can pass on their characteristics that it have acquired during its lifetime to its offspring. Also known as heritability of acquired characteristics.